- Flight attendants begin their workday by attending a safety briefing. This safety briefing is given before each flight so if the flight attendant was schedule to work two or three flights that day, he or she would have to attend two or three safety briefings. During the safety briefing the flight attendant must check that all safety equipment is where it is suppose to be and that it is in good working order. They must also take a look at any special needs that may be related to the passengers about to board the flight and get ready for them. Once the safety check has been performed the passengers are allowed to board.
- Once the passengers board it is the flight attendants job to make sure that they are all buckled in safely and that all doors are properly sealed shut including the cabin door. Flight attendants must then check that all carry on bags are put away as well as all the passenger trays. This must be done before the plane can take off. Flight attendants then play a movie that instructs the passengers on emergency procedures. The plane is then cleared for take off.
- Flight attendants do spend part of their day serving the passengers on board the airplane. They aid any passengers that are feeling ill. They hand out pillows for comfort and food for those who are hungry. They provide magazines to keep the passengers from being bored. If there are any passengers who are feeling anxious then the flight attendant helps to calm them down. They will also check on any children who are traveling on the plane without the accompaniment of their parents. The flight attendants will do whatever they can to make sure the passengers are safe, comfortable and happy.
- The flight attendants are required to check all equipment on the plane as well as passengers and the pilots every twenty to thirty minutes. This is in addition to serving the customers while in flight. It is important that any problems are taken care of immediately. That includes even the small things such as putting new batteries in the smoke detectors.
- Flight attendants spend the last part of their workday helping the passengers exit the plane safely. They will then put away all comfort and food items and clean up their stations. They make sure that all of the trays are folded away and that all of the carry-on storage bins are closed. They must make sure that all of the passenger items have been removed from the plane and there is no littering on the floor of the plane. They may then get a little break before it is time to start another safety check for another flight.
Comments
BeingArtsy said
on 5/8/2009 Thanks for posting an article describing how a flight attendant spends the workday. Some of it is inconsistent and changes depending on the carrier but must still meet FAA guidelines. Otherwise, it's pretty accurate. Not many people can do what a flight attendant does. Good article.